Rosen Hotels debuts new employee medical center

Hotelier Harris Rosen debuted his new employee medical clinic Friday, tripling the size of the company's health care center on International Drive.

The 12,000-square-foot clinic behind Rosen's Quality Inn has three wings for doctors and staff, as well as an employee gym with room for free exercise classes such as spinning and yoga. The medical center includes room for services such as digital mammography, bone mineral density scans, and nutritional counseling.

With about 40 staff members, the Rosen Medical Center provides the primary care for more than 2,000 employees of Rosen Hotels & Resorts and their dependents. The company, which has seven hotels in the Orlando area, has self-insured its associates since 1991, when it converted a small accounting office into a medical center.

"We weren't happy with the traditional way of providing health care. We didn't believe that the insurance company had our best interest at heart," said Harris Rosen, the hotel chain's founder and chief executive.

"My hope is that others will look at what we're going and decide that maybe it's something they should do also," Rosen said Friday. "We can share our knowledge and our experiences with others and make them feel more comfortable."

Rosen, who is marketing the concept to other businesses, calculates that over the two decade run of the program, he has unexpectedly saved $215 million.

"I had no idea what the cost would be," he said. "When you do something good, when you do the right thing…the good Lord makes sure that there are benefits. It happens."